Friedman to Swear In as City of Cortland’s Official Fire Chief

Wayne Friedman will swear in today (December 13) as the City of Cortland’s newest fire chief, after serving for several months as acting chief since the retirements of Chiefs William Knickerbocker in July and Charles Glover in September.

Captain Duane Pierce will be sworn in as his Deputy Chief.

A ten-year veteran of the department, Friedman’s career totals a combined 24 years of fire and emergency service experience.

He also holds a B.A. in Public Administration.

Additionally, Friedman was one of only 45 fire executives from New York to graduate from this year’s prestigious National Executive Fire Officer Program.

That’s an exclusive four-year course that’s been in existence for more than three decades and accepts only 200 students from across the country every year.

Friedman received his certificate of completion from the program this past July.

At a November 5 meeting of Cortland Common Council, he was unanimously approved as the fire department’s permanent chief following an official recommendation from Mayor Tobin.

Tonight’s ceremony is set for 6 p.m. at the Cortland Fire Department headquarters, located at 21 Court Street.